


Angel Without Wings

by His_French_Girl



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Relationships, M/M, Major Character Injury
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-07
Updated: 2019-04-07
Packaged: 2020-01-06 01:24:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18378092
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/His_French_Girl/pseuds/His_French_Girl
Summary: Castiel is hurt and becomes human. Sam and Dean take care of him.





	Angel Without Wings

**Author's Note:**

> Not beta read.

Sam walked into the bunker's kitchen, finding Dean sitting at the table with a bottle of whiskey in front of him, glass in hand.

“How's he doing, Sammy?” Dean asked without looking at him. 

“He's still in a lot of pain,” Sam answered as he sat across from his brother. “I gave him some painkillers that knocked him out again. Hopefully he'll stay under for a while. His body needs to recover and heal. He needs all the rest he can get.”

“How's his back looking?”

Sam poured his own drink into the empty glass that Dean had left on the table for him. He took a drink before answering. 

“About the same as before. It's going to take a while for the wounds to heal. And he's probably going to have scars. But so far, there aren't any signs of infection.”

“They took his wings, Sammy.” Dean drained his glass and set it down hard on the table. “Those bastards took his wings and left him to die.”

“I know, Dean, but we found him. We won't let Cas die, we'll do everything we can to keep him alive and help him get better.”

“I'm worried about him. Without his wings, he's human now. God, Sam, he's so fragile right now, I'm afraid to touch him. I keep thinking he might break, and it scares me.”

“It scares me too, Dean.” Sam put his own glass down. “But he's sleeping now, you should get some sleep too.”

Dean nodded and left the room, stopping in the room they had put Castiel in. Castiel was lying on his stomach, his arms down at his sides and his face turned towards the doorway. Dean knelt down beside the bed so that he could look at Cas in the dim light of the bedside lamp. He adjusted the sheet, pulling it up to just below the bandages, so that it didn't put any weight on his injured upper back. Dean leaned forward and gently kissed his angel's temple, unsure if it was meant to comfort the sleeping man, or reassure Dean himself that Cas was really there and still alive.   
Dean thought back to when they had found Castiel several hours before, lying on the ground in a wooded area, two other angels standing over him. Sam had held Dean back from going to their friend while the others were nearby. Dean knew that he and his brother were no match for a pair of angels, but the few minutes they had remained hidden from view had been torture for him. When the angels finally flew away, Dean had run to Castiel and knelt beside him. Castiel's back had been drenched in blood, and there were two wounds just below his shoulder blades, where Dean could tell his wings had been. 

Dean could still vividly remember stripping off his shirt to staunch the bleeding. He was still grateful for Sammy being there to help him get their injured friend to the car and drive them back to the bunker, Dean in the back seat with Cas. 

Dean let out a shuddering breath at the memory of finally getting Castiel home and taking care of the damage the other angels had done to him. 

Sam had seen his brother's distress and had taken charge of tending to the raw flesh where the angel's wings had once been. The two men came to a mutual agreement that it would be best for Sam to take care of the injuries, while Dean handled other aspects of providing Castiel with care. While Dean had never been squeamish, and had cleaned and stitched his fair share of wounds, on both himself and his brother, this was Cas, his Cas, and he just couldn't deal with seeing the damage that had been done to his angel. Whenever Dean looked at the wounds, or attempted to help Sam, he froze and was useless to the process.

After the initial cleaning and treatment, Sam had sent Dean out to try to find the strongest painkillers he could. Sam didn't ask any questions when his brother returned with syringes, vials and pills. He was just grateful that Dean had come through, for Castiel's sake. As soon as the meds were handed over, Sam disappeared into Cas' room.  
Dean blinked back tears as he returned to the present. He shifted his position so that he was sitting on the floor beside the bed, holding Cas' hand. He leaned his head against the mattress and drifted off to sleep. 

Sometime later, he was woken up by Castiel attempting to move.

“Hey, no Cas, don't move. Just stay still so you don't hurt yourself.”

“Dean?” Castiel whispered hoarsely. 

“Yeah, I'm here buddy. Don't move.” Dean stroked a hand through Castiel's hair, calming him. 

“It hurts so much.”

“I know, Babe.” Dean continued his motions. “Try to stay still. Sammy and me will take care of you.”

“I think I need to use the bathroom.”

“Okay, I'll help you.” 

Dean stood up and carefully helped Castiel out of bed and to the washroom. Progress was slow, but they eventually made it. Dean tamped down any embarrassment he might have felt and assisted Cas. When they got back to the bedroom, Dean helped Cas sit on the edge of the bed and to drink some water.

Dean looked at his watch and frowned. “I can't give you anything else for the pain, yet. It's too soon since Sam gave you the last dose.”

Castiel nodded and looked up at Dean. “Will you stay with me?”

“Of course I will.”

Dean didn't hesitate to remove his boots and get Cas to lie back down, arranging him on his stomach again, with Dean lying on his side next to him, the two facing each other. Dean held Castiel's hand again to give him comfort. 

“Dean, I'm afraid,” Castiel admitted in a whisper.

“So am I, but we'll get through this. You and me, same as always. And Sammy's here to help us, too.”

“But I'm human now. I don't know if I can do this.”

“You can, I have faith in you. I've always had faith in you. Remember, you aren't alone, you have me and Sammy.” Dean leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on Cas' forehead. “Try to get some sleep. I'll be right here, I won't leave you.”

Castiel closed his eyes and soon drifted off to sleep again. Dean watched over him and soon fell asleep himself, still holding his friend's hand. Sam found them like that when he went it to check on Cas. Dean stirred and silently watched his brother. 

“How long have I been asleep?” Dean asked quietly so that he wouldn't disturb the man beside him.

“Long enough that it's time to give him more pain meds when he wakes up.”

“Let him sleep as long as he can.” 

Sam nodded his agreement. He knew that Dean would get him when Castiel did finally wake up.

Dean didn't go back to sleep, instead watching over Cas while he slept on. Dean gently brushed his forehead, checking for fever. He knew that Sam would have already done it himself, but Dean wanted to make sure. 

Castiel stirred and opened his eyes. Dean brushed his forehead again, trying to give as much comfort through the gesture as he could. 

“Hey,” he spoke quietly, tenderly stroking his finger along Cas' face. “Sammy said it's time for you to have more painkillers.”

“I think I need them,” Cas stated. 

“Okay, I'll go get Sammy and we'll help you. Don't try to move on your own.”

Dean carefully got out of bed and went to get his brother. They came back into the room together, and Sam crouched down beside the bed to speak to Castiel.

“Hey Cas, how are you feeling?”

Castiel swallowed before answering. “The pain is worse again, and I think that I need to use the bathroom again as well.”

“Are you hungry? You should really try to eat something, especially with the pain pills.”

Castiel nodded slowly. Sam stood up and pulled the blankets back. 

“We'll get you up, so that you can go to the bathroom. Don't worry, while Dean takes you, I'll get you something to eat, and we'll give you something for the pain.”

The brothers very carefully maneuvered Cas out of bed. It took a considerable amount of time, but they didn't want to make him hurt any more than he already was. While Dean took him to the bathroom, Sam got him something to eat. When Sam returned to the bedroom with everything he needed for Cas, the other two were sitting on the bed waiting for him. He noticed that Castiel was leaning heavily on Dean for support, and the ordeal had clearly exhausted him. Sam set down what he was carrying and sat down on the other side of Cas to support him as well. He handed the plate with a piece of toast on it to Dean, who proceeded to tear it into small pieces and hand feed them to his friend. 

“Try to eat as much as you can, Babe,” Dean coaxed. “It's better to have something in your stomach so the painkillers don't make you sick.”

Castiel only managed about half of the toast before he weakly pushed it way. Sam took the plate back from Dean and gave him a glass of water next. Sam handed Cas two pills, Dean helped his angel drink some of the water to wash them down. Castiel was so weak and exhausted, he could barely hold a glass by himself. When Cas had taken as much water as he wanted, Dean set aside the glass and let Castiel lean into him for support. Sam then held the nutritional shake he had brought in with him so that Cas could drink from the straw. 

“Come on Sweetheart, you need a bit more,” Dean urged him as he gently nudged Cas' lips with the straw. Cas drank a few sips before pushing that away as well. 

“You did good, Cas,” Sam praised as he stood. “I'll put it in the fridge and you can have more later.”

“It's okay, you don't want to overload your stomach,” Dean explained as he held Castiel's hand briefly and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “It's better for you to just have a bit at a time. You're not used to eating. Just let us know if you're hungry, and we'll give you something.”

The brothers carefully lay Castiel back down, arranging him as comfortably as they could without causing him more pain. Dean sat on the bed beside him and stroked his hair. Sam moved around to the other side and changed the dressings again. Dean kept his attention focused on Cas, doing his best to distract him by singing to him. When Sam had finished and left the room, Dean continued to sing and stroke Castiel's hair until he fell asleep again.

When Dean was sure that he was asleep, he went to join Sam in the kitchen. Sam put a cup of coffee and a sandwich on the table for him. They ate in silence before Sam spoke. 

“His back's healing nicely. No sign of infection.”

“That's good. Wish we could've gotten a bit more food in him though.” 

“He's pretty weak right now, and not used to having to eat. And the meds could be making him nauseous, though he hasn't said anything.”

“He's not used to being human.”

Sam looked into his coffee cup as he spoke. “Yeah, it's gotta be pretty overwhelming for him.”

“He's scared. He said he doesn't know if he can do this. Being human.”

“Dean, he has us. He has to know we'll help him.” 

“I told him that.”

“He knows you love him.”

“Yeah, but I don't know if that's enough. I can't lose him, Sammy.”

“You won't. I'll do everything I can to keep that from happening.”

Dean nodded silently. He got up and left the room, leaving Sam sitting at the table to think about how to make sure the angel knew that both brothers cared for him in their own ways. 

 

Thanks to the strong painkillers Sam had given him, Castiel had slept through the night. The brothers had eaten their breakfast, and were now trying to get Cas to eat something to coat his stomach for the next round of pills. Cas was still too weak and in pain to be able to sit in the kitchen with them, so Sam and Dean sat on either side of him on the edge of the bed. Castiel leaned heavily against Sam, with Sam supporting him while Dean fed him some toast. 

“You did good, Babe,” Dean praised when Castiel took the last bite of toast from him. “Think you can drink a bit of this shake for me?”

Cas nodded his head where it rested against Sam's shoulder. Dean held the nutritional shake while Cas drank slowly from the straw. Cas drank a little and put his hand up to indicate he was finished. 

“Okay, Sweetheart. I'll give you some more later when you feel like you can handle it.” Dean put the bottle aside and turned to take Castiel's weight on his side. Sam gave him the pills and some water. 

Together, the brothers carefully lay Cas down again. Once Cas was asleep, Dean left him to join his brother in the library. While Cas slept, the brothers continued with research and looking for hunts to keep themselves distracted. 

 

For several days, the brothers continued their routine of taking care of Castiel and spending time reading through some of the books in the library and looking into possible hunts, even though neither was eager to leave Castiel's side for any length of time. Sam was pleased that his friend's wounds were healing without infection, even though there would be severe scarring. Dean fed Cas foods that would be easy on his newly human digestion, gradually increasing the amount and adding new things for him to eat. Dean was pleased that Cas could manage a bit of poached egg with his toast, and was more than happy to hand feed him fruit. Cas was also getting stronger, and could manage to feed himself more, but still allowed Dean to help him, knowing that the other man wanted to do as much as he could for him. 

Castiel had just been bathed, for the first time in several days, and felt much better for it. He had recently eaten and was lying on the sofa in the lounge while the brothers watched a movie. He was drifting in and out, not really paying attention. Cas was glad of the change from lying in his room, but still didn't have much energy and was still feeling pain from his injuries. But he was beginning to feel better, and was happy to be able to move around a bit more than he had a few days ago. 

When the movie was over, Cas was asleep. Dean didn't want to disturb him to move him back to his bed. Sam had found a folding cot some time ago in one of the storage rooms and brought it out for Dean, so that he could sleep in the lounge with Cas. Dean thanked him and set it up beside the couch and lay down on his side, facing Castiel. He held his hand and watched him. Cas stirred and opened his eyes to find that the room was darker than it had been, with only one lamp on to give light. Dean and Sam had quickly discovered that Cas didn't like being in complete darkness when he woke up. 

“Hey,” Dean said quietly.

“Hey,” Castiel responded. “I fell asleep, I'm sorry I missed the movie.”

“It's okay, you still need your rest. How are you feeling?”

“Better than I was when you brought me home.”

Home. Dean and Sam had brought Castiel home. None of them had said it, until now. 

“You're family, Cas, this is where you belong.”

“Now that I'm human?” Castiel asked with apprehension in his voice. 

Dean squeezed his hand before speaking again.

“You've always belonged with me and Sammy. Even when you were an angel, and now that you're human.” Dean licked his lips and held Castiel's gaze. “I love you, Cas. I can't stand the thought of being without you, even for a second. I've always loved you, and I always will.” 

Castiel closed his eyes and brought Dean's hand to his lips, kissing it lightly. When he opened his eyes again, he looked at Dean when he finally spoke.

“Dean Winchester, I loved you the moment I gripped your soul and flew with you. I am glad that I have the chance to stay here, with you and Sam.”

Dean moved closer to the edge of the cot and leaned in to give Castiel a tender kiss on the lips. He settled back and continued to look at Cas.

“Do you want to go to bed, or do you want to sleep out here?”

“I'm comfortable enough here. Besides, going to bed would require movement on my part.”

Dean smiled at him. “Okay, we'll stay out here, for now. If you're sure you're okay on the couch.”

“As long as you're nearby, I'm okay.”

The two men stayed were they were, holding hands. Eventually. Cas went back to sleep, and Dean kept watch until he fell asleep as well.


End file.
